Youth tipped to set Kenya Ablaze

On Friday, it will host the second series of youth empowerment summits under its recently launched sub-brand, BLAZE in Thika.

Dubbed Be Your Own Boss (BYOB), the event will be held at the Thika Technical Training Institute.

It will feature a full day of mentorship and plenary sessions designed to educate and guide youth interested in pursuing careers considered unconventional.

BYOB has engaged a crop of young mentors to interact with the youth, with the hope of making the sessions more relatable to a young crowd expected to comprise mostly of college and university students. This event follows a successful inaugural summit held in Eldoret in June, which was attended by over 6 000 youth from Uasin Gishu County and its environs.

“Before we launched BLAZE we did a lot of research in order to understand how to engage the youth. During these sessions they told us that what they needed most was empowerment to achieve their dreams. This is what informed our decision to launch BLAZE,” pointed out Sylvia Mulinge, Director – Consumer Business, Safaricom.

TNS Global and Youth Dynamix Kenya conducted the research between late 2015 and early 2016, with the results showing that – contrary to popular belief – Kenyan youth are more interested in turning their passions into professional careers than in parties.

BLAZE has also partnered with jobs site Brighter Monday, which will teach young people how to package themselves when looking for employment.

Through the series of summits youth will also get an opportunity to network and audition for the upcoming B.Y.O.B. TV show, which will see 12 contestants compete for a chance to win funding for their businesses.

Other summits are scheduled to take place in Kisumu, Nakuru, Meru, Mombasa and Nairobi in the coming weeks.
– CAJ News